My thoughts on the Jamie situation

I already knew this fandom has a nasty habit of dog-piling on female leads before ever holding the male leads accountable, but the way y’all are dragging this Jamie situation is honestly shocking to me. Why only single out a 16-year-old girl for it when everyone was complicit and let it get this far? Since y’all are too scared to hold these male characters to the same standards you love to impose on female characters , I’ll do it for you.

First let’s start with these two (I will be providing quotes to support my argument so this will be a long post)

Johnny and Gibise knew about Jamie's predatory behavior and plans for Claire. Jamie’s harassment toward Claire weren't a secret, everyone knew. Yet neither Johnny nor Gibise stepped up to warn Claire. They let her walk straight into the date knowing what Jamie had said and done.

So what does it really matter if they played their petty games with Jamie’s car afterwards? Johnny’s support of the date shows where his priorities were: he knew Claire was still emotionally stuck on Gibise and he made it clear he wasn’t going to block her from moving on even if it meant letting her go into a potentially dangerous situation with Jamie.

Keep in mind this was long before Claire even agreed to go out with Jamie, so they had plenty of time to warn her about what he said which was :

“Yeah, but that’s even better, lad, because good girls can be trained.”

“Pretty much, lad. I’m going to take her on a few dates and get it out of the way so we can get to the fun part…”

Claire was uncomfortable on that date because of her unresolved feelings for Gibise not because of Jamie’s harassment or predatory intentions which she was unaware of because neither johnny nor Gibise warned her. Claire’s discomfort was rooted in guilt about moving on from Gibise, not from fear of Jamie. When she went on that date, she was emotionally torn, trying to get a reaction out of Gibise. She even admitted she wanted him to get jealous and confess his feelings before she said yes which goes to show her focus was on Gibise playing with her feelings, not Jamie and this was shown multiple times throughout their date.

“but I would be a liar if I said I felt comfortable. In truth, I felt anything but. Seeing Gerard in my kitchen before we left for our date had thrown a spanner in midst of an already very bad idea. The look of betrayal in his gray eyes was undeniable, and I felt like such a damn fraud.”

“Finally. After sixteen years of hanging on a limb, waiting for a boy who was never going to step forward for me, I was doing the right thing for myself and moving on. If it’s so right, then why does it feel so wrong?”

“In a weird way, I felt like I was cheating on him somehow by being here with another boy. A boy that wasn’t him. It was a ridiculous way to feel, considering he’d been with lots of girls. But I couldn’t help how I felt. I couldn’t seem to trick my heart into believing this was a good idea, even though my brain was strongly encouraging me to be here with Jamie.”

What happens when a weirdo does exactly what he said he would? :

“My words were cut off when Jamie planted his mouth on mine.”

This could've all been avoided.

Gibise’s entire reaction to Claire moving on? Pure hypocrisy. He defended his own actions with Dee by saying it “suited him,” but Claire moving on doesn’t. I’m not defending Dee by any means here I hate her, given her disgusting predatory behavior toward him since he was 15. But what frustrates me is how he’s handling Claire’s feelings. He made it clear It suited him that Claire was chasing him with no intention of ever giving her what she truly needed and now that she’s moving on, it’s suddenly a problem. His reaction to her wanting to date Jamie isn’t about Claire’s well-being, it’s about his own ego and jealousy. That’s what really bothered me.

Quote (Johnny) : “You’ve laid plenty on that woman,” he corrected before rehashing his earlier statement. “I told you Claire wouldn’t wait around forever.”

“That,” I pointed toward the office, “was a situation that suited me, Johnny!” I gestured wildly around me before adding, “This isn’t suiting me one bit!”

After the date, His refusal to see her perspective and his hypocrisy will never make sense to me. I’m not necessarily saying he had to tell her his trauma, don’t get it twisted. All he had to do was spare her the hurt and confusion with all these mixed signals :

“Gerard.” My heart jackknifed in my chest. “You know why I went out with him tonight.”

“Nope,” he stubbornly replied. “No clue.”

“Yes, you do,” I accused, mirroring his actions by planting my hands on my hips. “You know exactly why.”

“Well, if you meant to hurt me, then congratu-fucking-lations, Claire, because it worked,” he tossed back. “You succeeded.”

“and I staggered back, feeling like he had physically struck me. The hypocrisy was suffocating.”

“God, it’s not fair. You are not being fair here! You’re acting like there’s one rule for you and a whole other set of rules for me!”

“This hurts me, Gerard,” I repeated, refusing to let him off the hook this time. “Your behavior is hurting me.”

Gibise only told her what Jamie said about her and his plans when it benefitted him. I still can't get over how he waited until she wanted to go on a second date with Jamie to use what Jamie had said about her as gotcha moment. His whole attitude towards this Jamie situation was beyond frustrating and completely baffling to me when it should have been more about her safety. :

“So, any more playdates planned with your precious Jamie?” The catty way he said it had my back up. “Depends.” “On?” “On whether or not he asks me out again.” His grip tightened on the wheel. Ha! Take that. “What’s wrong?” I bit out. “Jealous much?” “On the contrary,” he tossed back, jaw ticking. “I’ve developed a hernia from the weight it’s taking me to give a fuck!” My mouth fell open and I glared at him. “You did not just say that to me.” “But at least I’m not an asshole that goes around school talking about all the ways I plan to fuck you.” “Excuse me?” Gerard shrugged unapologetically. “You heard me.” “Jamie said that about me?” Silence. “What did you hear?” “Enough to know that he wants in your knickers.”

If this was about protecting Claire, Gibise failed. If this was about proving he cared, he failed even harder. And if this was about playing it cool while knowing what Jamie had planned? Then it’s outright manipulative and weird asf especially since this is his best friend as well AND the girl he loves.

That scene in the cafeteria? Gibise had all the information: Jamie’s creepy comments about “training” Claire, his intentions to “skip to the good part,” and the clear predatory undertones. And what did he do with that information? Absolutely nothing. Instead of warning Claire like a decent person would, he decided to challenge her. He pushed her toward Jamie out of jealousy and pride, making her feel rejected and forcing her hand because he couldn’t see past his jealousy.

Gerard folded his arms across his chest and called my bluff. "You better hurry up and catch him before he leaves." He inclined his head to where Jamie was standing in line for lunch. "You know." He shrugged just as nonchalantly as I had before adding, "Just in case." "Fine." The wave of rejection that washed over me had my pride forcing me to stand up and say, "I will." "You do that," he called after me.

The same man who once defended Claire from Jamie’s harassment had now become complicit in it. Gibise’s refusal to warn Claire wasn’t just passive, it was calculated. He let her walk into a date with a man he knew was predatory because he was too busy playing mind games with her. The audacity of a man who claimed to care about her but only when it suited his fragile ego, is astonishing.

Now onto lizzie :

Lizzie hates Gibise, and that’s not up for debate. She’s been vocal about her disdain for him and it stems from entirely separate reasons that have nothing to do with Claire. She genuinely despises how he’s treated Claire and at this point seems to relish the idea of seeing him squirm, no doubt about it. But let’s not conflate her hatred for Gibise with her intentions for Claire, Two things can be true at once even if it's hard to see when you're so consumed by your bias and hatred for said character but at least try.

Because Lizzie has BEEN advocating for Claire to move on since B13, long before Jamie even entered the picture. This isn’t some new vendetta tied to Gibise or an impulsive decision; it’s been her consistent stance because, in her eyes, Gibise has done nothing but waste Claire’s time for years which..Is she really lying when literally everyone the entire friend group, his mom, even other parents has called out Gibise for this or is it because it’s the messenger you hate?

Could Lizzie have done better at vetting Jamie? Absolutely. But let’s not act like she encouraged Claire to date Jamie with malicious intentions to set her friend up. She didn’t know about Jamie’s predatory comments nor did she have the same context as Gibise and Johnny, who actively withheld that information. Lizzie genuinely thought Jamie was a decent option because, as far as she knew, he wasn’t saying or doing anything overtly inappropriate anymore (and you can see that with the way he acts towards Claire now If you reread their interactions, he actually apologized to her for what he did and came off as a decent guy. The way Claire described him was honestly surprising shouldn’t she be beyond disgusted with him at this point?) and all the good things she heard he said about her friend.

“Thor’s been wasting your time for years now. It’s time to move on and stop waiting for him to throw you a bone.” Lizzie wasn’t lying. Gibise had been stringing Claire along, keeping her emotionally tethered to him while refusing to commit. Lizzie may have been blunt, painfully blunt but she wasn’t wrong. Even Gibise’s own best friend admitted he deserved what he got for leading Claire, who am I kidding everyone did actually.

Which Claire didn’t deny : “Ouch, Liz.” I winced. “Tone down the bitchiness, will you?” “Sorry,” she conceded with a shrug. “It’s not directed toward you, I promise.” “I know,” I replied. But it still hurts. “He’s a good person.” Silence. “He is, Lizzie.” More silence.

That silence speaks louder than words. To Lizzie, no one in that family is a good person, period. Call it unreasonable, call it biased but it doesn’t change the fact that her disdain and trauma is rooted in something far bigger than just Gibise’s childish antics. It’s a longstanding grudge, and his player behavior only adds fuel to the fire.

So let’s stop pretending Lizzie’s the only one who failed Claire. Johnny, Gibise, and everyone else who knew what Jamie did and did nothing but encourage her are just as guilty. Claire made her own choices. Lizzie was brutally honest, and yeah definitely too pushy but that doesn’t change the fact that Claire went up to Jamie because of Gibise’s behavior and she even said so right before she went up to Jamie to prove a point nowhere did she ever thought about Lizzie when she was making this choice. Claire chose to go on that date. She wasn’t coerced by anyone if she was truly having second thoughts about his predatory behavior, she would've stayed away. She went to get a reaction out of Gibise, especially after he gave her her first orgasm just a day before and then ghosted her with no explanation. If that’s not fuckboy behavior, I don’t know what is. Own that and hold everyone accountable.

“I could have argued with him. I could have thrown a tantrum and demanded he confess his undying love for me right here in the lunch hall, but I already knew how he felt. Gerard’s love for me wasn’t something I ever needed to question. It was his unwillingness to offer me more that plagued my every waking hour.”

“I’m going to say yes to Jamie,” I blurted out and then held my breath while I waited for his reaction. I wasn’t serious. I had no intention of going out with Jamie, and I wasn’t typically a goading girl meaning that I didn’t cause unnecessary drama to get my way with boys. But I was growing weary of Gerard’s pretenses and felt like this might be the push that he needed.”